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PurposeThis study explores whether religion plays an important role in corporate poverty alleviation. Religious atmosphere affects managers' attitude towards corporate social responsibility (CSR) and then influences corporate poverty alleviation. This study first examines the impact of religious atmosphere on corporate poverty alleviation and then investigates whether formal institutions, such as law enforcement environments and ownership, influence the relationship between religious atmosphere and corporate poverty alleviation behavior.Design/methodology/approachIn 2016, the Chinese government initiated a nationwide campaign aiming to eliminate poverty in China by 2020. The authors conduct empirical tests with data on Chinese listed firms from 2016 to 2020. The religious atmosphere is measured by the number of Buddhist monasteries and Taoist temples within a certain radius around Chinese listed firms' registered addresses. The authors adopt the ordinary least squares (OLS) method for regression and take the two-stage least squares (2SLS) method to address the endogeneity issue.FindingsThe results show a positive relationship between religious atmosphere and corporate poverty alleviation donations. Law enforcement attenuates the positive association between the religious atmosphere and corporate poverty alleviation donations. Religion and corporate poverty alleviation donations have a more positive association for non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs) than for state-owned enterprises (SOEs).Research limitations/implicationsThe authors' findings have important implications. First, this study inspires incorporating the ethical value of traditional culture, such as religion, into CSR. Second, the findings imply that informal institutions have a greater impact on corporate decision-making when formal institutions are weak, suggesting that informal institutions should be emphasized when promoting CSR in countries where formal institutions are relatively weak. The study investigates only religious influence on corporate poverty alleviation based on Buddhism and Taoism, but the authors do not examine the impacts of other religions. Future research may examine the relationships between other religions and corporate poverty alleviation in China.Originality/valueThis study illustrates the positive role played by religion in promoting CSR by relating religious atmosphere to corporate poverty alleviation. It fills the research gap between religion and CSR and also contributes to the literature on determinants of corporate poverty alleviation.